Microorganisms that co-consume glucose with non-glucose carbohydrates and methods of use

ABSTRACT

Microorganisms that co-consume glucose with non-glucose carbohydrates, such as xylose, and methods of using same. The microorganisms comprise modifications that reduce or ablate the activity of a phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP):carbohydrate phosphotransferase system (PTS) protein or modifications that reduce or ablate the activity of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a GntR. The PTS protein may be selected from an enzyme I (EI), an HPr, an FPr, and an enzyme II Glc  (EII Glc ). Additional modifications include reduction or ablation of the activity of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase and inclusion of recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase genes. The microorganisms are particularly suited to co-consuming glucose and xylose in media containing these substrates and producing ethanol therefrom.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

This invention was made with government support under DE-FC02-07ER64494 awarded by the US Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in the invention.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention is generally directed to microorganisms that co-consume glucose with non-glucose carbohydrates as well as methods of using the microorganisms for the production of commodity chemicals. The invention in a specific aspect is directed to microorganisms that co-consume glucose and xylose, e.g., in lignocellulosic hydrolysates, for converting the glucose and xylose into ethanol.

BACKGROUND

Ethanol obtained from the fermentation of starch from grains or sucrose from sugar cane is blended with gasoline to supplement petroleum supplies. The relatively oxygenated ethanol increases the efficiency of combustion and the octane value of the fuel mixture. Production of ethanol from grain and other foodstuffs, however, can limit the amount of agricultural land available for food and feed production, thereby raising the market prices of grains and leading to the expansion of agricultural production into forests or marginal lands thereby resulting in ecological damage. Moreover, the intense tillage and fertilization of prime agricultural land for the production of grains can result in excessive soil erosion and runoff or penetration of excess phosphorous and nitrogen into waterways and aquifers. Production of ethanol from lignocellulosic agricultural or woody feedstocks that do not compete with food and animal feed supplies is therefore highly desirous for the large-scale development of renewable fuels from biomass.

Several obstacles currently limit the use of biomass for renewable fuel production. The biomass must be pretreated to extract the sugars, lignins, and other components from the starting material. Mild conditions for pre-hydrolysis are desirable because they result in the formation of lower amounts of inhibitory components such as furfural, hydroxymethyl furfural, and sugar degradation products such as formic acid. The resulting sugars can be present in the form of monosaccharides such as D-glucose, D-xylose, D-mannose, D-galactose and L-arabinose or as various oligomers or polymers of these constituents along with other lignocellulosic components such as acetic acid, 4-O-methylglucuronic acid, and ferulic acid. Glucose in sugar hydrolysates may repress the induction of transcripts for proteins essential for the assimilation of less readily utilized sugars that are also present in hydrolysates, such as xylose, cellobiose, galactose, arabinose, and rhamnose. In addition, the production of ethanol from glucose can attain inhibitory concentrations even before use of other sugars commences. This results in the incomplete utilization of sugars and sugar mixtures in hydrolysates. Glucose in sugar hydrolysates may also repress the induction of transcripts for proteins essential for the depolymerization of cellulose, cellulo-oligosaccharides, xylan, xylo-oligosaccharides, mannan, manno-oligosaccharides, and other more complex hemicelluloses and oligosaccharides derived from them. These poly- and oligo-saccharides can be present in hydrolysates that have been recovered under mild treatment conditions.

Bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Zymomonas mobilis, and Klebsiella oxytoca and yeasts such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Scheffersomyces stipitis have been engineered for the production of ethanol from xylose, arabinose, xylo- and cellulo-oligosaccharides since native strains of these organisms are limited either by low production rates, strong preference for utilization of glucose over xylose, susceptibility to inhibitors, susceptibility to microbial or bacteriophage contamination, high requirements for nutrients, or containment regulations due to the expression of transgenes in order to achieve xylose or cellobiose utilization. There remains a need for microorganisms that will ferment glucose, xylose, and other sugars from lignocellulosic materials at high rates and yields without these drawbacks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides microorganisms and uses thereof that address at least some of the above-mentioned needs.

The microorganisms of the invention include recombinant microorganisms. One version is a microorganism comprising modifications that reduce or ablate the activity of a phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP):carbohydrate phosphotransferase system (PTS) protein selected from the group consisting of an enzyme I (EI), an HPr, an FPr, and an enzyme II^(Glc) (EII^(Glc)). In some versions, the microorganism comprises a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of one or both of HPr and FPr. The HPr may comprise the HPr of E. coli or an ortholog thereof, and the FPr may comprise the FPr of E. coli or an ortholog thereof. In some versions, the microorganism comprises a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of one or both of an EI and an EII^(Glc).

Another version is a microorganism comprising a first modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a second modification selected from the group consisting of a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of GntR, a modification that introduces a recombinant phosphogluconate dehydratase gene, a modification that introduces a recombinant 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene, a modification that introduces a recombinant 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene, and a modification that introduces a recombinant oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene. In some versions, the second modification comprises a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of GntR. In some versions, the second modification comprises a modification that introduces a recombinant phosphogluconate dehydratase gene. In some versions, the second modification comprises one or more modifications that introduce one or more of a recombinant 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene, a recombinant 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene, and a recombinant oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene. In some versions, the second modification comprises one or more modifications that introduce a recombinant phosphogluconate dehydratase gene and one or more of a recombinant 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene, a recombinant 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene, and a recombinant oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene. In some versions, the second modification comprises one or more modifications that introduce a recombinant phosphogluconate dehydratase gene, a recombinant 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene, a recombinant 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene, and a recombinant oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene.

The microorganisms in any of the above-mentioned versions may further comprise at least one, some, or all of a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a pyruvate formate lyase, a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a lactate dehydrogenase, a modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a fumarate reductase, a modification that introduces a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene, and a modification that introduces a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene.

A method of the invention comprises consuming a carbohydrate by culturing a microorganism as described herein in a medium. The medium preferably comprises glucose and xylose, and the culturing preferably co-consumes the xylose with the glucose. The medium may comprise a biomass hydrolysate, such as an enzymatic or acid hydrolysate. In some versions, the microorganism is adapted to growth in a first medium comprising a component selected from the group consisting of glucose, xylose, and ethanol prior to culturing the microorganism in the medium. In some versions, the culturing produces an amount of ethanol during the consumption of the carbohydrate.

The objects and advantages of the invention will appear more fully from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention made in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a schema of the development and fermentation characteristics of exemplary microorganisms of the invention.

FIGS. 2A-2D show growth (OD600) and compound concentrations versus time for microorganisms of the invention cultured anaerobically in a minimal medium containing glucose and xylose.

FIGS. 3A-3E show growth (OD600) and compound concentrations versus time for microorganisms of the invention cultured anaerobically in shake flasks in a synthetic hydrolysate medium (SynH, which lacks lignotoxins). FIG. 3F shows glucose and xylose uptake rates and succinate and ethanol production rates for microorganisms of the invention.

FIGS. 4A-4I show growth (OD600) and compound concentrations versus time for microorganisms of the invention cultured anaerobically in a bioreactor with a synthetic hydrolysate medium (SynH) (FIGS. 4A-4C), ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX)-pretreated corn stover hydrolysate (ACSH) (FIGS. 4D-4F), or AFEX-pretreated switchgrass hydrolysate (ASGH) (FIGS. 4G-4I).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the invention is a recombinant (i.e., genetically modified) microorganism. The microorganism may be a eukaryotic microorganism or a prokaryotic microorganism. Exemplary eukaryotic microorganisms include protists and yeasts. Exemplary prokaryotes include bacteria and archaea. Examples of suitable bacterial cells include gram-positive bacteria such as strains of Bacillus, (e.g., B. brevis or B. subtilis), Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces, and gram-negative bacteria, such as strains of Escherichia coli and Aeromonas hydrophila. Examples of suitable yeast cells include strains of Saccharomyces (e.g., S. cerevisiae), Schizosaccharomyces, Kluyveromyces, Pichia (e.g., P. pastoris or P. methlanolica), Hansenula (e.g., H. Polymorpha), Yarrowia, Scheffersomyces, (e.g., S. stipitis), and Candida.

In some versions of the invention, the microorganism is a microorganism that comprises a phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP):carbohydrate phosphotransferase system (PTS). The PTS is a well characterized carbohydrate transport system utilized by microorganisms such as bacteria. See Postma et al. 1993 and Tchieu et al. 2001, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirely. Exemplary bacteria comprising the PTS include those from the genera Bacillus, Clostridium, Enterobacteriaceae, Enterococcus, Erwinia, Escherichia, Klebsiella, Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, Mycoplasma, Pasteurella, Rhodobacter, Rhodoseudomonas, Salmonella, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Vibrio, and Xanthomonas. Exemplary species include E. coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus camosus, Bacillus subtilis, Mycoplasma capricolum, Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus salivarius, Streptococcus mutans, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus camosus, Streptococcus sanguis, Rhodobacter capsulatus, Vibrio alginolyticus, Erwinia chrysanthemi, Xanthomonas campestris, Lactococcus lactis, Lactobacillus casei, Rhodoseudomonas sphaeroides, Erwinia carotovora, Pasteurella multocida, and Clostridium acetobutylicum.

In some versions of the invention, the microorganism comprises intact fadA, fadB, fadI, fadJ, and/or fadR genes or expresses the functional gene products thereof.

The microorganisms of the invention comprise modifications that reduce or ablate the activity of gene products of one or more genes. Such a modification that that reduces or ablates the activity of gene products of one or more genes is referred to herein as a “functional deletion” of the gene product. “Functional deletion” or its grammatical equivalents refers to any modification to a microorganism that ablates, reduces, inhibits, or otherwise disrupts production of a gene product, renders a produced gene product non-functional, or otherwise reduces or ablates a produced gene product's activity. Accordingly, in some instances, a gene product that is functionally deleted means that the gene product is not produced by the microorganism at all. “Gene product” refers to a protein or polypeptide encoded and produced by a particular gene. “Gene” refers to a nucleic acid sequence capable of producing a gene product and may include such genetic elements as a coding sequence together with any other genetic elements required for transcription and/or translation of the coding sequence. Such genetic elements may include a promoter, an enhancer, and/or a ribosome binding site (RBS), among others.

One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that there are many well-known ways to functionally delete a gene product. For example, functional deletion can be accomplished by introducing one or more genetic modifications. As used herein, “genetic modifications” refer to any differences in the nucleic acid composition of a cell, whether in the cell's native chromosome or in endogenous or exogenous non-chromosomal plasmids harbored within the cell. Examples of genetic modifications that may result in a functionally deleted gene product include but are not limited to substitutions, partial or complete deletions, insertions, or other variations to a coding sequence or a sequence controlling the transcription or translation of a coding sequence, such as placing a coding sequence under the control of a less active promoter, etc. In some versions, a gene or coding sequence can be replaced with a selection marker or screenable marker. Various methods for introducing genetic modifications are well known in the art and include homologous recombination, among other mechanisms. See, e.g., Green et al., Molecular Cloning: A laboratory manual, 4^(th) ed., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (2012) and Sambrook et al., Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual, 3^(rd) ed., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (2001). Various other genetic modifications that functionally delete a gene product are described in the examples below. In some versions, functional deletion can be accomplished by expressing ribozymes or antisense sequences that target the mRNA of the gene of interest. Functional deletion can also be accomplished by inhibiting the activity of the gene product, for example, by chemically inhibiting a gene product with a small-molecule inhibitor, by expressing a protein that interferes with the activity of the gene product, or by other means.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may have less than about 95%, less than about 90%, less than about 85%, less than about 80%, less than about 75%, less than about 70%, less than about 65%, less than about 60%, less than about 55%, less than about 50%, less than about 45%, less than about 40%, less than about 35%, less than about 30%, less than about 25%, less than about 20%, less than about 15%, less than about 10%, less than about 5%, less than about 1%, or about 0% of the activity of the non-functionally deleted gene product.

In certain versions of the invention, a cell with a functionally deleted gene product may have less than about 95%, less than about 90%, less than about 85%, less than about 80%, less than about 75%, less than about 70%, less than about 65%, less than about 60%, less than about 55%, less than about 50%, less than about 45%, less than about 40%, less than about 35%, less than about 30%, less than about 25%, less than about 20%, less than about 15%, less than about 10%, less than about 5%, less than about 1%, or about 0% of the activity of the gene product compared to a cell with the non-functionally deleted gene product.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may be expressed at an amount less than about 95%, less than about 90%, less than about 85%, less than about 80%, less than about 75%, less than about 70%, less than about 65%, less than about 60%, less than about 55%, less than about 50%, less than about 45%, less than about 40%, less than about 35%, less than about 30%, less than about 25%, less than about 20%, less than about 15%, less than about 10%, less than about 5%, less than about 1%, or about 0% of the amount of the non-functionally deleted gene product.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least 1, at least 2, at least 3, at least 4, at least 5, at least 10, at least 20, at least 30, at least 40, at least 50, or more nonsynonymous substitutions are present in the gene or coding sequence of the gene product.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least 1, at least 2, at least 3, at least 4, at least 5, at least 10, at least 20, at least 30, at least 40, at least 50, or more bases are inserted in the gene or coding sequence of the gene product.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least about 1%, at least about 5%, at least about 10%, at least about 15%, at least about 20%, at least about 25%, at least about 30%, at least about 35%, at least about 40%, at least about 50%, at least about 55%, at least about 60%, at least about 65%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at least about 80%, at least about 85%, at least about 90%, at least about 95%, or about 100% of the gene product's gene or coding sequence is deleted or mutated.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least about 1%, at least about 5%, at least about 10%, at least about 15%, at least about 20%, at least about 25%, at least about 30%, at least about 35%, at least about 40%, at least about 50%, at least about 55%, at least about 60%, at least about 65%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at least about 80%, at least about 85%, at least about 90%, at least about 95%, or about 100% of a promoter driving expression of the gene product is deleted or mutated.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least about 1%, at least about 5%, at least about 10%, at least about 15%, at least about 20%, at least about 25%, at least about 30%, at least about 35%, at least about 40%, at least about 50%, at least about 55%, at least about 60%, at least about 65%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at least about 80%, at least about 85%, at least about 90%, at least about 95%, or about 100% of an enhancer controlling transcription of the gene product's gene is deleted or mutated.

In certain versions of the invention, the functionally deleted gene product may result from a genetic modification in which at least about 1%, at least about 5%, at least about 10%, at least about 15%, at least about 20%, at least about 25%, at least about 30%, at least about 35%, at least about 40%, at least about 50%, at least about 55%, at least about 60%, at least about 65%, at least about 70%, at least about 75%, at least about 80%, at least about 85%, at least about 90%, at least about 95%, or about 100% of a sequence controlling translation of the gene product's mRNA is deleted or mutated.

In certain versions of the invention, the decreased activity or expression of the functionally deleted gene product is determined with respect to the activity or expression of the gene product in its unaltered state as found in nature. In certain versions of the invention, the decreased activity or expression of the functionally deleted gene product is determined with respect to the activity or expression of the gene product in its form in a corresponding microorganism. In certain versions, the genetic modifications giving rise to a functionally deleted gene product are determined with respect to the gene in its unaltered state as found in nature. In certain versions, the genetic modifications giving rise to a functionally deleted gene product are determined with respect to the gene in its form in a corresponding microorganism. As used herein, “corresponding microorganism” refers to a microorganism of the same species having the same or substantially same genetic and proteomic composition as a microorganism of the invention, with the exception of genetic and proteomic differences resulting from the manipulations described herein for the microorganisms of the invention.

In some versions of the invention, a gene product of the PTS is functionally deleted. The PTS may comprise such proteins as enzyme I (EI), HPr, FPr, multiphosphoryl transfer protein (MTP), enzyme II (EII) and enzyme III (EIII). The following reactions comprise exemplary PTS-mediated translocation and phosphorylation reactions with a given carbohydrate (P=phospho group): P-enolpyruvate+EI↔P-EI+pyruvate  (1) P-EI+HPr↔P-HPr+EI  (2) P-HPr+EIIA(domain or protein)↔P-EIIA+HPr  (3) P-EIIA+EIIB(domain or protein)↔P-EIIB+EIIA  (4) EIIC P-EIIB+carbohydrate_((out))→EIIB+carbohydrate-P_((in))  (5) In most cases, EI and HPr are soluble, cytoplasmic proteins that participate in the phosphorylation of all PTS carbohydrates in a given organism and thus have been called the general PTS proteins. The EIIs are carbohydrate specific and may consist of a single membrane-bound protein composed of three domains (A, B, and C), such as that for mannitol (EII^(Mtl)) in E. coli, or of two or more proteins, at least one of which is membrane bound (e.g., B and C) and one of which is soluble (IIA or EIII), such as the IICB^(glc)-IIA^(Glc) pair for glucose in E. coli. In both cases, the phospho group is transferred from PEP to the incoming carbohydrate via obligatory phospho intermediates of EI, HPr, EIIA, and EIIB. The EIIC domain, which makes up the integral membrane portion of an EII, presumably forms its translocation channel and at least part of its specific substrate-binding site. In a third variation, exemplified by the mannose PTS in E. coli, both A and B domains are fused in a single soluble polypeptide, while there are two integral membrane proteins (IIC^(Man) and IID^(Man)) involved in mannose translocation.

Although the glucose, mannitol, and mannose PTSs of E. coli are the most common in terms of protein organization in most organisms, other variations are possible. For example, the cellobiose PTS in E. coli has been shown to have each functional domain of its EII as a separate protein: two soluble proteins (IIA^(Cel) and IIB^(Cel)) that each contain a site of covalent phosphorylation, and one membrane-bound protein (IIC^(Cel)). For PTS-mediated fructose transport, a protein called FPr (fructose-specific HPr) combines the functions of the IIA^(Fru) domain and of an HPr-like protein (Geerse et al. 1989). In this case, then, it is FPr rather than HPr that is phosphorylated by EI (on the HPr-like domain) as an intermediate in fructose translocation.

In some versions of the invention, an EI in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. EIs include enzymes classified under Enzyme Commission (EC) number 2.7.3.9. An exemplary EI is the PtsI of E. coli, which is encoded by ptsI. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli PtsI is SEQ ID NO:2, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli ptsI is SEQ ID NO:1. Other EIs include homologs of the E. coli PtsI. Homologs of the E. coli PtsI include orthologs of the E. coli PtsI, paralogs of such orthologs having PtsI activity, and paralogs of the E. coli PtsI in E. coli having PtsI activity. The E. coli PtsI and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art. See Postma et al. 1993, Tchieu et al. 2001, Robillard et al. 1979, Waygood et al. 1980, Byrne et al 1988, De Reuse et al. 1988, Saffen et al. 1987, Weigel et al. 1982, LiCalsi et al. 1991, Schnierow et al. 1989, Kohlbrecher et al. 1992, Reizer et al. 1992, Gonzy-Tréboul et al. 1989, Jaffor et al. 1977, Alpert et al. 1985, Hengstenberg et al. 1976, Albert et al. 1985, Vadeboncoeur et al. 1983, Gagnon et al. 1992, and Thibault et al. 1985.

In some versions of the invention, an HPr in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. HPrs include enzymes classified under EC 2.7.11.-. HPrs also include proteins classified as TC 8.A.8.1.1 in the Transporter Classification System. An exemplary HPr is the HPr of E. coli, which is encoded by ptsH. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli HPr is SEQ ID NO:4, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli ptsH is SEQ ID NO:3. Other HPrs include homologs of the E. coli HPr. Homologs of the E. coli HPr include orthologs of the E. coli HPr, paralogs of such orthologs having the HPr activity, and paralogs of the E. coli HPr in E. coli having HPr activity. The E. coli HPr and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art. See Postma et al. 1993, Tchieu et al. 2001 Anderson et al. 1971, Dooijewaard et al. 1979, Byrne et al. 1988, De Reuse et al. 1988, Saffen et al. 1987, Weigel et al. 1982, Beneski et al. 1982, Byrne et al. 1988, Powers et al. 1984, Schnierow et al. 1989, Titgemeyer et al. 1990, Kalbitzer et al. 1982, Marquet et al. 1976, Reizer et al. 1989, Reizer et al. 1989, Gonzy-Tréboul et al. 1989, Jaffor et al. 1976, Beyreuther et al. 1977, Simoni et al. 1973, Reizer et al. 1988, Eisermann et al. 1991, Deutscher et al. 1986, Vadeboncoeur et al. 1983, Waygood et al. 1986, Mimurs et al. 1984, Thibault et al. 1985, and Jenkinson 1989.

In some versions of the invention, an FPr in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. FPrs include enzymes classified under EC 2.7.1.69. An exemplary FPr is the FPr of E. coli, which is encoded by fruB. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli FPr is SEQ ID NO:6, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli fruB is SEQ ID NO:5. Other FPrs include homologs of the E. coli FPr. Homologs of the E. coli FPr include orthologs of the E. coli FPr, paralogs of such orthologs having FPr activity, and paralogs of the E. coli FPr in E. coli having FPr activity. The E. coli FPr and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art. See Postma et al. 1993, Tchieu et al. 2001, Waygood 1980, Geerse et al. 1986, Sutrina et al. 1988, and Geerse et al. 1989.

In some versions of the invention, a glucose-specific EII (EII^(Glc)) is functionally deleted. EII^(Glc) proteins include any protein comprising one or more of an EIIA domain, an EIIB domain, and an EIIC domain having activity for glucose. EIIA^(Glc) domains include those having activity classified under EC:2.7.1.-. EIIB^(Glc) domains include those having activity classified under EC:2.7.1.69. An exemplary EII^(Glc) is the EIIA^(Glc) of E. coli, which is encoded by crr. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli EIIA^(Glc) is SEQ ID NO:8, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli crr is SEQ ID NO:7. Another exemplary EII^(Glc) is the PTS system glucose-specific EIICB component (PTGCB) of E. coli, which is encoded by ptsG. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli PTGCB is SEQ ID NO:10, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli ptsG is SEQ ID NO:9. EII^(Glc) proteins are well-recognized in the art. See Postma et al. 1993, Tchieu et al. 2001, Erni et al. 1986, Saffen et al. 1987, Nelson et al. 1984, Gonzy-Tréboul et al. 1991, Gonzy-Tréboul et al. 1989, Zagorec et al. 1992, Reidl et al. 1991, Boos et al. 1990, Peri et al. 1990, Peri et al. 1988, Rogers et al. 1988, Vogler et al. 1991, Ebner et al. 1988, Lengeler et al. 1992, Blatch et al. 1990, Fouet et al. 1987, Zukowski et al. 1990, Sato et al. 1989, Bramley et al. 1987, Schnetz et al. 1987, El Hassouni et al. 1992, and Hall et al. 1992.

In some versions of the invention, a non-PTS protein is functionally deleted. Microorganisms in which non-PTS proteins are functionally deleted may or may not comprise a PTS and may comprise any type of microorganism described herein.

Accordingly, in some versions of the invention a phosphoglucose isomerase in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. Phosphoglucose isomerases are also known as glucose-6-phosphate isomerases and phosphohexose isomerases. Phosphoglucose isomerases include enzymes classified under EC 5.3.1.9. An exemplary phosphoglucose isomerase is the glucose-6-phosphate isomerase of E. coli, which is encoded by pgi. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli glucose-6-phosphate isomerase is SEQ ID NO:12, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli pgi is SEQ ID NO:11. Other phosphoglucose isomerases include homologs of the E. coli glucose-6-phosphate isomerase. Homologs of the E. coli glucose-6-phosphate isomerase include orthologs of the E. coli glucose-6-phosphate isomerase, paralogs of such orthologs having phosphoglucose isomerase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli glucose-6-phosphate isomerase in E. coli having phosphoglucose isomerase activity. Phosphoglucose isomerases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention a GntR in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. GntRs are transcriptional regulators of enzymes involved in gluconate metabolism. An exemplary GntR is the GntR of E. coli, which is encoded by gntR. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli GntR is SEQ ID NO:14, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli gntR is SEQ ID NO:13. Other GntRs include homologs of the E. coli GntR. Homologs of the E. coli GntR include orthologs of the E. coli GntR, paralogs of such orthologs having GntR activity, and paralogs of the E. coli GntR in E. coli having GntR activity. GntRs are well-recognized in the art. The deletion of GntR in E. coli is believed to lead to higher expression of the endogenous edd-eda operon, the latter of which encodes a phosphogluconate dehydratase and a multifunctional 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase/2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase. Thus, an additional or alternative modification to functionally deleting a GntR is expressing or overexpressing a phosphogluconate dehydratase, a 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase, a 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase, and/or an oxaloacetate decarboxylase. Phosphogluconate dehydratases, 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolases, 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolases, and oxaloacetate decarboxylases are discussed below.

In some versions of the invention, a lactate dehydrogenase in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. Lactate dehydrogenases include enzymes classified under EC 1.1.1.27. An exemplary lactate dehydrogenase is the LdhA of E. coli, which is encoded by ldhA. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli LdhA is SEQ ID NO:16, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli ldhA is SEQ ID NO:15. Other lactate dehydrogenases include homologs of the E. coli LdhA. Homologs of the E. coli LdhA include orthologs of the E. coli LdhA, paralogs of such orthologs having lactate dehydrogenase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli LdhA in E. coli having lactate dehydrogenase activity. The E. coli LdhA and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, a pyruvate formate lyase in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. Pyruvate formate lyases include enzymes classified under EC 2.3.1.54. An exemplary pyruvate formate lyase is the PFL of E. coli, which is encoded by pflB. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli PFL is SEQ ID NO:18, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli pflB is SEQ ID NO:17. Other pyruvate formate lyases include homologs of the E. coli PFL. Homologs of the E. coli PFL include orthologs of the E. coli PFL, paralogs of such orthologs having pyruvate formate lyase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli PFL in E. coli having pyruvate formate lyase activity. The E. coli PFL and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, a pyruvate formate lyase activating enzyme in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. Pyruvate formate lyase activating enzymes include enzymes classified under EC 1.97.1.4. Pyruvate formate lyase activating enzymes activate pyruvate formate lyases. Functionally deleting a pyruvate formate lyase activating enzyme constitutes a way to functionally delete a pyruvate formate lyase. An exemplary pyruvate formate lyase activating enzyme is the PFL activase of E. coli, which is encoded by pflA. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli PFL activase is SEQ ID NO:20, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli pflA is SEQ ID NO:19. Other pyruvate formate lyase activating enzymes include homologs of the E. coli PFL activase. Homologs of the E. coli PFL activase include orthologs of the E. coli PFL activase, paralogs of such orthologs having pyruvate formate lyase activating activity, and paralogs of the E. coli PFL activase in E. coli having pyruvate formate lyase activating activity. The E. coli PFL activase and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, fumarate reductase in the recombinant microorganism is functionally deleted. Fumarate reductases include enzymes classified under EC 1.3.5.4 and EC 1.3.1.6. Fumarate reductases are multisubunit enzymes, which typically comprise A, B, C, and D subunits. A fumarate reductase can be functionally deleted by, e.g., modifying the genes for any one or more of the subunits. An exemplary fumarate reductase is the QFR of E. coli, which is comprised of FrdA, FrdB, FrdC, and FrdD. FrdA is encoded by frdA. FrdB is encoded by frdB. FrdC is encoded by frdC. FrdD is encoded by frdD. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli FrdA is SEQ ID NO:22, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli frdA is SEQ ID NO:21. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli FrdB is SEQ ID NO:24, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli frdB is SEQ ID NO:23. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli FrdC is SEQ ID NO:26, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli frdC is SEQ ID NO:25. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli FrdD is SEQ ID NO:28, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli frdD is SEQ ID NO:27. Other fumarate reductases include homologs of the E. coli QFR. Homologs of the E. coli QFR include orthologs of the E. coli QFR, paralogs of such orthologs having fumarate reductase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli QFR in E. coli having fumarate reductase activity. The E. coli QFR and homologs thereof are well-recognized in the art.

The above-mentioned proteins may be functionally deleted in various combinations in a cell to enhance ethanol production in the cell and/or to enhance dual sugar (e.g., glucose and xylose) consumption. One exemplary combination comprises functional deletion of any one or more of an EI, an HPr, an FPr, and an EII^(Glc). Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of an EI, an HPr, an FPr, and an EII^(Glc) and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of an EI, an HPr, an FPr, and an EII^(Glc) and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of an EI and an EII^(Glc) and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of an EI and an EII^(Glc) and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an HPr and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an HPr and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an FPr with a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an FPr and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an HPr and an FPr and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of an HPr and an FPr and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a GntR and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of any one or more of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a GntR and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase and a lactate dehydrogenase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of each of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a GntR and a functional deletion of any one or more of a pyruvate formate lyase, a lactate dehydrogenase, and a fumarate reductase. Another exemplary combination comprises a functional deletion of each of a phosphoglucose isomerase and a GntR and a functional deletion of each of a pyruvate formate lyase and a lactate dehydrogenase.

In various versions of the invention, the cell is genetically modified to comprise a recombinant gene. In most cases, the recombinant gene is configured to be expressed or overexpressed in the cell. If a cell endogenously comprises a particular gene, the gene may be modified to exchange or optimize promoters, exchange or optimize enhancers, or exchange or optimize any other genetic element to result in increased expression of the gene. Alternatively, one or more additional copies of the gene or coding sequence thereof may be introduced to the cell for enhanced expression of the gene product. If a cell does not endogenously comprise a particular gene, the gene or coding sequence thereof may be introduced to the cell for expression of the gene product. The gene or coding sequence may be incorporated into the genome of the cell or may be contained on an extra-chromosomal plasmid. The gene or coding sequence may be introduced to the cell individually or may be included in an operon. Techniques for genetic manipulation are described in further detail below.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant phosphogluconate dehydratase gene. “Phosphogluconate dehydratase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses a phosphogluconate dehydratase or a gene product having phosphogluconate dehydratase activity. Phosphogluconate dehydratases are also known as 6-phosphogluconate dehydratases 6-phosphogluconic dehydrases, gluconate-6-phosphate dehydratases, gluconate 6-phosphate dehydratases, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrases, and 6-phospho-D-gluconate hydro-lyases. Phosphogluconate dehydratase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 4.2.1.12. An exemplary phosphogluconate dehydratase is the Edd of E. coli, which is encoded by edd. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli Edd is SEQ ID NO:30, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli edd is SEQ ID NO:29. Other phosphogluconate dehydratases include homologs of the E. coli Edd. Homologs of the E. coli Edd include orthologs of the E. coli Edd, paralogs of such orthologs having phosphogluconate dehydratase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli Edd in E. coli having phosphogluconate dehydratase activity. Phosphogluconate dehydratases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene. “2-Keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses a 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase or a gene product having 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase activity. 2-Keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolases are also known as 4-hydroxy-2-oxoglutarate aldolases, 2-oxo-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolases, 4-hydroxy-2-oxoglutarate glyoxylate-lyases, KHG-aldolases, and KHGAs. 2-Keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 4.1.3.16 and EC 4.1.3.42. An exemplary 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase is the Eda of E. coli, which is encoded by eda. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli Eda is SEQ ID NO:32, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli eda is SEQ ID NO:31. Other 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolases include homologs of the E. coli Eda. Homologs of the E. coli Eda include orthologs of the E. coli Eda, paralogs of such orthologs having 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli Eda in E. coli having 2-keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolase activity. 2-Keto-4-hydroxyglutarate aldolases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene. “2-Keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses a 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase or a gene product having 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase activity. 2-Keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolases are also known as 2-dehydro-3-deoxy-phosphogluconate aldolases, 2-dehydro-3-deoxy-D-gluconate-6-phosphate D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate-lyases, KDPG-aldolases, phospho-2-dehydro-3-deoxygluconate aldolases, and phospho-2-keto-3-deoxygluconate aldolases. 2-Keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 4.1.2.14 and EC 4.1.2.55. An exemplary 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase is the Eda of E. coli, which is encoded by eda. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli Eda is SEQ ID NO:32, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli eda is SEQ ID NO:31. Other 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolases include homologs of the E. coli Eda. Homologs of the E. coli Eda include orthologs of the E. coli Eda, paralogs of such orthologs having 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli Eda in E. coli having 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolase activity. 2-Keto-3-deoxy-6-phosphogluconate aldolases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene. “Oxaloacetate decarboxylase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses an oxaloacetate decarboxylase or a gene product having oxaloacetate decarboxylase activity. Oxaloacetate decarboxylases are also known as oxaloacetate β-decarboxylases and oxaloacetate carboxy-lyases. Oxaloacetate decarboxylase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 4.1.1.3 and EC 1.1.1.38. An exemplary oxaloacetate decarboxylase is the Eda of E. coli, which is encoded by eda. An exemplary sequence of the E. coli Eda is SEQ ID NO:32, and an exemplary sequence of the E. coli eda is SEQ ID NO:31. Other oxaloacetate decarboxylases include homologs of the E. coli Eda. Homologs of the E. coli Eda include orthologs of the E. coli Eda, paralogs of such orthologs having oxaloacetate decarboxylase activity, and paralogs of the E. coli Eda in E. coli having oxaloacetate decarboxylase activity. Oxaloacetate decarboxylases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene. “Pyruvate decarboxylase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses a pyruvate decarboxylase or a gene product having pyruvate decarboxylase activity. Pyruvate decarboxylase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 4.1.1.1. An exemplary pyruvate decarboxylase is the PDC of Zymomonas mobilis, which is encoded by pdc. An exemplary sequence of the Z. mobilis PDC is SEQ ID NO:34, and an exemplary sequence of the Z. mobilis pdc is SEQ ID NO:33. Other pyruvate decarboxylases include homologs of the Z. mobilis PDC. Homologs of the Z. mobilis PDC include orthologs of the Z. mobilis PDC, paralogs of such orthologs having pyruvate decarboxylase activity, and paralogs of the Z. mobilis PDC in E. coli having pyruvate decarboxylase activity. Pyruvate decarboxylases are well-recognized in the art.

In some versions of the invention, the cells are genetically modified to express or overexpress a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene. “Alcohol dehydrogenase gene” refers to a polynucleotide that encodes or expresses an alcohol dehydrogenase or a gene product having alcohol dehydrogenase activity. Alcohol dehydrogenase activity includes the activity characterized by the enzymes classified under EC 1.1.1.1. An exemplary alcohol dehydrogenase is the ADH2 of Zymomonas mobilis, which is encoded by adhB. An exemplary sequence of the Z. mobilis ADH2 is SEQ ID NO:36, and an exemplary sequence of the Z. mobilis adhB is SEQ ID NO:35. Other alcohol dehydrogenases include homologs of the Z. mobilis ADH2. Homologs of the Z. mobilis ADH2 include orthologs of the Z. mobilis ADH2, paralogs of such orthologs having alcohol dehydrogenase activity, and paralogs of the Z. mobilis ADH2 in Z. mobilis having alcohol dehydrogenase activity. Alcohol dehydrogenases are well-recognized in the art.

The recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene and/or the recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene can be included in a microorganism comprising a functional deletion of any of the genes or gene products, or combinations thereof, described herein.

The cells of the invention may be genetically altered to functionally delete, express, or overexpress homologs of any of the specific genes or gene products explicitly described herein. Proteins and/or protein sequences are “homologous” when they are derived, naturally or artificially, from a common ancestral protein or protein sequence. Similarly, nucleic acids and/or nucleic acid sequences are homologous when they are derived, naturally or artificially, from a common ancestral nucleic acid or nucleic acid sequence. Nucleic acid or gene product (amino acid) sequences of any known gene, including the genes or gene products described herein, can be determined by searching any sequence databases known the art using the gene name or accession number as a search term. Common sequence databases include GenBank (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genbank/), ExPASy (http://expasy.org/), KEGG (www.genome.jp/kegg/), among others. Homology is generally inferred from sequence similarity between two or more nucleic acids or proteins (or sequences thereof). The precise percentage of similarity between sequences that is useful in establishing homology varies with the nucleic acid and protein at issue, but as little as 25% sequence similarity (e.g., identity) over 50, 100, 150 or more residues (nucleotides or amino acids) is routinely used to establish homology (e.g., over the full length of the two sequences to be compared). Higher levels of sequence similarity (e.g., identity), e.g., 30%, 35% 40%, 45% 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, or 99% or more, can also be used to establish homology. Accordingly, homologs of the genes or gene products described herein include genes or gene products having at least about 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, or 99% identity to the genes or gene products described herein. Methods for determining sequence similarity percentages (e.g., BLASTP and BLASTN using default parameters) are described herein and are generally available. The homologous proteins should demonstrate comparable activities and, if an enzyme, participate in the same or analogous pathways. Homologs include orthologs and paralogs. “Orthologs” are genes and products thereof in different species that evolved from a common ancestral gene by speciation. Normally, orthologs retain the same or similar function in the course of evolution. Paralogs are genes and products thereof related by duplication within a genome. As used herein, “orthologs” and “paralogs” are included in the term “homologs.”

For sequence comparison and homology determination, one sequence typically acts as a reference sequence to which test sequences are compared. When using a sequence comparison algorithm, test and reference sequences are input into a computer, subsequence coordinates are designated, if necessary, and sequence algorithm program parameters are designated. The sequence comparison algorithm then calculates the percent sequence identity for the test sequence(s) relative to the reference sequence based on the designated program parameters. A typical reference sequence of the invention is a nucleic acid or amino acid sequence corresponding to the genes or gene products described herein.

Optimal alignment of sequences for comparison can be conducted, e.g., by the local homology algorithm of Smith & Waterman, Adv. Appl. Math. 2:482 (1981), by the homology alignment algorithm of Needleman & Wunsch, J. Mol. Biol. 48:443 (1970), by the search for similarity method of Pearson & Lipman, Proc. Nat'l. Acad. Sci. USA 85:2444 (1988), by computerized implementations of these algorithms (GAP, BESTFIT, FASTA, and TFASTA in the Wisconsin Genetics Software Package, Genetics Computer Group, 575 Science Dr., Madison, Wis.), or by visual inspection (see Current Protocols in Molecular Biology, F. M. Ausubel et al., eds., Current Protocols, a joint venture between Greene Publishing Associates, Inc. and John Wiley & Sons, Inc., (supplemented through 2008)).

One example of an algorithm that is suitable for determining percent sequence identity and sequence similarity for purposes of defining homologs is the BLAST algorithm, which is described in Altschul et al., J. Mol. Biol. 215:403-410 (1990). Software for performing BLAST analyses is publicly available through the National Center for Biotechnology Information. This algorithm involves first identifying high scoring sequence pairs (HSPs) by identifying short words of length W in the query sequence, which either match or satisfy some positive-valued threshold score T when aligned with a word of the same length in a database sequence. T is referred to as the neighborhood word score threshold (Altschul et al., supra). These initial neighborhood word hits act as seeds for initiating searches to find longer HSPs containing them. The word hits are then extended in both directions along each sequence for as far as the cumulative alignment score can be increased. Cumulative scores are calculated using, for nucleotide sequences, the parameters M (reward score for a pair of matching residues; always >0) and N (penalty score for mismatching residues; always <0). For amino acid sequences, a scoring matrix is used to calculate the cumulative score. Extension of the word hits in each direction are halted when: the cumulative alignment score falls off by the quantity X from its maximum achieved value; the cumulative score goes to zero or below, due to the accumulation of one or more negative-scoring residue alignments; or the end of either sequence is reached. The BLAST algorithm parameters W, T, and X determine the sensitivity and speed of the alignment. The BLASTN program (for nucleotide sequences) uses as defaults a wordlength (W) of 11, an expectation (E) of 10, a cutoff of 100, M=5, N=−4, and a comparison of both strands. For amino acid sequences, the BLASTP program uses as defaults a wordlength (W) of 3, an expectation (E) of 10, and the BLOSUM62 scoring matrix (see Henikoff & Henikoff (1989) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89:10915).

In addition to calculating percent sequence identity, the BLAST algorithm also performs a statistical analysis of the similarity between two sequences (see, e.g., Karlin & Altschul, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90:5873-5787 (1993)). One measure of similarity provided by the BLAST algorithm is the smallest sum probability (P(N)), which provides an indication of the probability by which a match between two nucleotide or amino acid sequences would occur by chance. For example, a nucleic acid is considered similar to a reference sequence if the smallest sum probability in a comparison of the test nucleic acid to the reference nucleic acid is less than about 0.1, more preferably less than about 0.01, and most preferably less than about 0.001. The above-described techniques are useful in identifying homologous sequences for use in the methods described herein.

The terms “identical” or “percent identity”, in the context of two or more nucleic acid or polypeptide sequences, refer to two or more sequences or subsequences that are the same or have a specified percentage of amino acid residues or nucleotides that are the same, when compared and aligned for maximum correspondence, as measured using one of the sequence comparison algorithms described above (or other algorithms available to persons of skill) or by visual inspection.

The phrase “substantially identical” in the context of two nucleic acids or polypeptides refers to two or more sequences or subsequences that have at least about 60%, about 65%, about 70%, about 75%, about 80%, about 85%, about 90, about 95%, about 98%, or about 99% or more nucleotide or amino acid residue identity, when compared and aligned for maximum correspondence, as measured using a sequence comparison algorithm or by visual inspection. Such “substantially identical” sequences are typically considered to be “homologous”, without reference to actual ancestry. Preferably, the “substantial identity” exists over a region of the sequences that is at least about 50 residues in length, more preferably over a region of at least about 100 residues, and most preferably, the sequences are substantially identical over at least about 150 residues, at least about 250 residues, or over the full length of the two sequences to be compared.

Terms used herein pertaining to genetic manipulation are defined as follows.

Deletion: The removal of one or more nucleotides from a nucleic acid molecule or one or more amino acids from a protein, the regions on either side being joined together.

Derived: When used with reference to a nucleic acid or protein, “derived” means that the nucleic acid or polypeptide is isolated from a described source or is at least 70%, 80%, 90%, 95%, 99%, or more identical to a nucleic acid or polypeptide included in the described source.

Endogenous: As used herein with reference to a nucleic acid molecule and a particular cell, “endogenous” refers to a nucleic acid sequence or polypeptide that is in the cell and was not introduced into the cell using recombinant engineering techniques. For example, an endogenous gene is a gene that was present in a cell when the cell was originally isolated from nature.

Exogenous: As used herein with reference to a nucleic acid molecule or polypeptide in a particular cell, “exogenous” refers to any nucleic acid molecule or polypeptide that does not originate from that particular cell as found in nature. Thus, a non-naturally-occurring nucleic acid molecule or protein is considered to be exogenous to a cell once introduced into the cell. A nucleic acid molecule or protein that is naturally-occurring also can be exogenous to a particular cell. For example, an entire coding sequence isolated from cell X is an exogenous nucleic acid with respect to cell Y once that coding sequence is introduced into cell Y, even if X and Y are the same cell type. The term “heterologous” is used herein interchangeably with “exogenous.”

Expression: The process by which a gene's coded information is converted into the structures and functions of a cell, such as a protein, transfer RNA, or ribosomal RNA. Expressed genes include those that are transcribed into mRNA and then translated into protein and those that are transcribed into RNA but not translated into protein (for example, transfer and ribosomal RNAs).

Introduce: When used with reference to genetic material, such as a nucleic acid, and a cell, “introduce” refers to the delivery of the genetic material to the cell in a manner such that the genetic material is capable of being expressed within the cell. Introduction of genetic material includes both transformation and transfection. Transformation encompasses techniques by which a nucleic acid molecule can be introduced into cells such as prokaryotic cells or non-animal eukaryotic cells. Transfection encompasses techniques by which a nucleic acid molecule can be introduced into cells such as animal cells. These techniques include but are not limited to introduction of a nucleic acid via conjugation, electroporation, lipofection, infection, and particle gun acceleration.

Isolated: An “isolated” biological component (such as a nucleic acid molecule, polypeptide, or cell) has been substantially separated or purified away from other biological components in which the component naturally occurs, such as other chromosomal and extrachromosomal DNA and RNA and proteins. Nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides that have been “isolated” include nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides purified by standard purification methods. The term also includes nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides prepared by recombinant expression in a cell as well as chemically synthesized nucleic acid molecules and polypeptides. In one example, “isolated” refers to a naturally-occurring nucleic acid molecule that is not immediately contiguous with both of the sequences with which it is immediately contiguous (one on the 5′ end and one on the 3′ end) in the naturally-occurring genome of the organism from which it is derived.

Nucleic acid: Encompasses both RNA and DNA molecules including, without limitation, cDNA, genomic DNA, and mRNA. Nucleic acids also include synthetic nucleic acid molecules, such as those that are chemically synthesized or recombinantly produced. The nucleic acid can be double-stranded or single-stranded. Where single-stranded, the nucleic acid molecule can be the sense strand, the antisense strand, or both. In addition, the nucleic acid can be circular or linear.

Operably linked: A first nucleic acid sequence is operably linked with a second nucleic acid sequence when the first nucleic acid sequence is placed in a functional relationship with the second nucleic acid sequence. For instance, a promoter is operably linked to a coding sequence if the promoter affects the transcription or expression of the coding sequence. An origin of replication is operably linked to a coding sequence if the origin of replication controls the replication or copy number of the nucleic acid in the cell. Operably linked nucleic acids may or may not be contiguous.

Operon: Configurations of separate genes that are transcribed in tandem as a single messenger RNA are denoted as operons. Thus, a set of in-frame genes in close proximity under the transcriptional regulation of a single promoter constitutes an operon. Operons may be synthetically generated using the methods described herein.

Overexpress: When a gene is caused to be transcribed at an elevated rate compared to the endogenous or basal transcription rate for that gene. In some examples, overexpression additionally includes an elevated rate of translation of the gene compared to the endogenous translation rate for that gene. Methods of testing for overexpression are well known in the art, for example transcribed RNA levels can be assessed using RT-PCR and protein levels can be assessed using SDS page gel analysis.

Recombinant: A recombinant nucleic acid molecule or polypeptide is one that has a sequence that is not naturally occurring, has a sequence that is made by an artificial combination of two otherwise separated segments of sequence, or both. This artificial combination can be achieved, for example, by chemical synthesis or by the artificial manipulation of isolated segments of nucleic acid molecules or polypeptides, such as genetic engineering techniques. “Recombinant” is also used to describe nucleic acid molecules that have been artificially manipulated but contain the same regulatory sequences and coding regions that are found in the organism from which the nucleic acid was isolated, such as an introduced additional copy of a nucleic acid molecule naturally present in the organism. A recombinant cell or microorganism is one that contains an exogenous nucleic acid molecule, such as a recombinant nucleic acid molecule.

Recombinant cell: A cell that comprises a recombinant nucleic acid.

Vector or expression vector: An entity comprising a nucleic acid molecule that is capable of introducing the nucleic acid, or being introduced with the nucleic acid, into a cell for expression of the nucleic acid. A vector can include nucleic acid sequences that permit it to replicate in the cell, such as an origin of replication. A vector can also include one or more selectable marker genes and other genetic elements known in the art. Examples of suitable vectors are found below.

Unless explained otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. Although methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present disclosure, suitable methods and materials are described below.

Exogenous nucleic acids can be introduced stably or transiently into a cell using techniques well known in the art, including electroporation, calcium phosphate precipitation, DEAE-dextran mediated transfection, liposome-mediated transfection, conjugation, transduction, and the like. For stable transformation, a nucleic acid can further include a selectable marker. Suitable selectable markers include antibiotic resistance genes that confer, for example, resistance to neomycin, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, or kanamycin, genes that complement auxotrophic deficiencies, and the like. (See below for more detail.)

Various embodiments of the invention use an expression vector that includes a heterologous nucleic acid encoding a protein involved in a metabolic or biosynthetic pathway. Suitable expression vectors include, but are not limited to viral vectors, phage vectors, bacteriophage vectors, plasmids, phagemids, cosmids, fosmids, bacterial artificial chromosomes, Pl-based artificial chromosomes, yeast plasmids, yeast artificial chromosomes, and any other vectors specific for cells of interest.

Useful vectors can include one or more selectable marker genes to provide a phenotypic trait for selection of transformed cells. The selectable marker gene encodes a protein necessary for the survival or growth of transformed cells grown in a selective culture medium. Cells not transformed with the vector containing the selectable marker gene will not survive in the culture medium. Typical selection genes encode proteins that (a) confer resistance to antibiotics or other toxins, e.g., ampicillin, neomycin, methotrexate, or tetracycline, (b) complement auxotrophic deficiencies, or (c) supply critical nutrients not available from complex media, e.g., the gene encoding D-alanine racemase for Bacilli. In alternative embodiments, the selectable marker gene is one that encodes dihydrofolate reductase or confers neomycin resistance (for use in eukaryotic cell culture), or one that confers tetracycline or ampicillin resistance (for use in a prokaryotic cell, such as E. coli).

The coding sequence in the expression vector is operably linked to an appropriate expression control sequence (promoters, enhancers, and the like) to direct synthesis of the encoded gene product. Such promoters can be derived from microbial or viral sources. Depending on the cell/vector system utilized, any of a number of suitable transcription and translation control elements, including constitutive and inducible promoters, transcription enhancer elements, transcription terminators, etc. can be used in the expression vector (see e.g., Bitter et al. (1987) Methods in Enzymology, 153:516-544).

Suitable promoters for use in prokaryotic cells include but are not limited to: promoters capable of recognizing the T4, T3, Sp6, and T7 polymerases; the P_(R) and P_(L) promoters of bacteriophage lambda; the trp, recA, heat shock, and lacZ promoters of E. coli; the alpha-amylase and the sigma-specific promoters of B. subtilis; the promoters of the bacteriophages of Bacillus; Streptomyces promoters; the int promoter of bacteriophage lambda; the bla promoter of the beta-lactamase gene of pBR322; and the CAT promoter of the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase gene. Prokaryotic promoters are reviewed by Glick, J. Ind. Microbiol. 1:277 (1987); Watson et al, Molecular Biology of the Gene, 4th Ed., Benjamin Cummins (1987); and Sambrook et al., In: Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual, 3^(rd) ed., Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (2001).

Non-limiting examples of suitable promoters for use within a eukaryotic cell are typically viral in origin and include the promoter of the mouse metallothionein I gene (Hamer et al. (1982) J. Mol. Appl. Gen. 1:273); the TK promoter of Herpes virus (McKnight (1982) Cell 31:355); the SV40 early promoter (Benoist et al. (1981) Nature (London) 290:304); the Rous sarcoma virus promoter; the cytomegalovirus promoter (Foecking et al. (1980) Gene 45:101); and the yeast gal4 gene promoter (Johnston et al. (1982) PNAS (USA) 79:6971; Silver et al. (1984) PNAS (USA) 81:5951.

Coding sequences can be operably linked to an inducible promoter. Inducible promoters are those wherein addition of an effector induces expression. Suitable effectors include proteins, metabolites, chemicals, or culture conditions capable of inducing expression. Suitable inducible promoters include but are not limited to the lac promoter (regulated by IPTG or analogs thereof), the lacUV5 promoter (regulated by IPTG or analogs thereof), the tac promoter (regulated by IPTG or analogs thereof), the trc promoter (regulated by IPTG or analogs thereof), the araBAD promoter (regulated by L-arabinose), the phoA promoter (regulated by phosphate starvation), the recA promoter (regulated by nalidixic acid), the proU promoter (regulated by osmolarity changes), the cst-I promoter (regulated by glucose starvation), the tetA promoter (regulated by tetracycline), the cadA promoter (regulated by pH), the nar promoter (regulated by anaerobic conditions), the p_(L) promoter (regulated by thermal shift), the cspA promoter (regulated by thermal shift), the T7 promoter (regulated by thermal shift), the T7-lac promoter (regulated by IPTG), the T3-lac promoter (regulated by IPTG), the T5-lac promoter (regulated by IPTG), the T4 gene 32 promoter (regulated by T4 infection), the nprM-lac promoter (regulated by IPTG), the VHb promoter (regulated by oxygen), the metallothionein promoter (regulated by heavy metals), the MMTV promoter (regulated by steroids such as dexamethasone) and variants thereof.

Alternatively, a coding sequence can be operably linked to a repressible promoter. Repressible promoters are those wherein addition of an effector represses expression. Examples of repressible promoters include but are not limited to the trp promoter (regulated by tryptophan); tetracycline-repressible promoters, such as those employed in the “TET-OFF”-brand system (Clontech, Mountain View, Calif.); and variants thereof.

In some versions, the cell is genetically modified with a heterologous nucleic acid encoding a biosynthetic pathway gene product that is operably linked to a constitutive promoter. Suitable constitutive promoters are known in the art.

In some versions, the cell is genetically modified with an exogenous nucleic acid encoding a single protein. In other embodiments, a modified cell is one that is genetically modified with exogenous nucleic acids encoding two or more proteins. Where the cell is genetically modified to express two or more proteins, those nucleic acids can each be contained in a single or in separate expression vectors. When the nucleic acids are contained in a single expression vector, the nucleotide sequences may be operably linked to a common control element (e.g., a promoter), that is, the common control element controls expression of all of the coding sequences in the single expression vector.

When the cell is genetically modified with heterologous nucleic acids encoding two or more proteins, one of the nucleic acids can be operably linked to an inducible promoter, and one or more of the nucleic acids can be operably linked to a constitutive promoter. Alternatively, all can be operably linked to inducible promoters or all can be operably linked to constitutive promoters.

Nucleic acids encoding enzymes desired to be expressed in a cell may be codon-optimized for that particular type of cell. Codon optimization can be performed for any nucleic acid by “OPTIMUMGENE”-brand gene design system by GenScript (Piscataway, N.J.).

The introduction of a vector into a bacterial cell may be performed by protoplast transformation (Chang and Cohen (1979) Molecular General Genetics, 168:111-115), using competent cells (Young and Spizizen (1961) Journal of Bacteriology, 81:823-829; Dubnau and Davidoff-Abelson (1971) Journal of Molecular Biology, 56: 209-221), electroporation (Shigekawa and Dower (1988) Biotechniques, 6:742-751), or conjugation (Koehler and Thorne (1987) Journal of Bacteriology, 169:5771-5278). Commercially available vectors for expressing heterologous proteins in bacterial cells include but are not limited to pZERO, pTrc99A, pUC19, pUC18, pKK223-3, pEX1, pCAL, pET, pSPUTK, pTrxFus, pFastBac, pThioHis, pTrcHis, pTrcHis2, and pLEx, in addition to those described in the following Examples.

Methods for transforming yeast cells with heterologous DNA and producing heterologous polypeptides therefrom are disclosed by Clontech Laboratories, Inc., Palo Alto, Calif., USA (in the product protocol for the “YEASTMAKER”-brand yeast transformation system kit); Reeves et al. (1992) FEMS Microbiology Letters 99:193-198; Manivasakam and Schiestl (1993) Nucleic Acids Research 21(18):4414-5; and Ganeva et al. (1994) FEMS Microbiology Letters 121:159-64. Expression and transformation vectors for transformation into many yeast strains are available. For example, expression vectors have been developed for the following yeasts: Candida albicans (Kurtz, et al. (1986) Mol. Cell. Biol. 6:142); Candida maltosa (Kunze et al. (1985) J. Basic Microbiol. 25:141); Hansenula polymorpha (Gleeson et al. (1986) J. Gen. Microbiol. 132:3459) and Roggenkamp et al. (1986) Mol. Gen. Genet. 202:302); Kluyveromyces fragilis (Das et al. (1984) J. Bacteriol. 158:1165); Kluyveromyces lactis (De Louvencourt et al. (1983) J. Bacteriol. 154:737) and Van den Berg et al. (1990) Bio/Technology 8:135); Pichia quillerimondii (Kunze et al. (1985) J. Basic Microbiol. 25:141); Pichia pastoris (Cregg et al. (1985) Mol. Cell. Biol. 5:3376; U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,837,148; and 4,929,555); Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Hinnen et al. (1978) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 75:1929 and Ito et al. (1983) J. Bacteriol. 153:163); Schizosaccharomyces pombe (Beach et al. (1981) Nature 300:706); and Yarrowia lipolytica (Davidow et al. (1985) Curr. Genet. 10:380-471 and Gaillardin et al. (1985) Curr. Genet. 10:49).

Suitable procedures for transformation of Aspergillus cells are described in EP 238 023 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,679,543. Suitable methods for transforming Fusarium species are described by Malardier et al., Gene, 1989, 78:147-56 and WO 96/00787. Yeast may be transformed using the procedures described by Becker and Guarente, In Abelson, J. N. and Simon, M. I., editors, Guide to Yeast Genetics and Molecular Biology, Methods in Enzymology, Volume 194, pp 182-187, Academic Press, Inc., New York; Ito et al. (1983) Journal of Bacteriology, 153: 163; and Hinnen et al. (1978) PNAS USA, 75:1920.

The microorganisms of the invention are particularly suited to co-consuming glucose with non-glucose carbohydrates, such as xylose. Accordingly, methods of the invention comprise culturing a microorganism of the invention in a medium comprising glucose and xylose. The xylose may be present at any level within the medium. The glucose and xylose may each independently be present in the medium at least at 5 g/l, 10 g/l, 15 g/l, 20 g/l, 25 g/l, 30 g/l, 35 g/l, 40 g/l, 45 g/l, 50 g/l, 55 g/l, 60 g/l, 65 g/l, 70 g/l, 75 g/l, 80 g/l, 85 g/l, 90 g/l, 95 g/l, 100 g/l, 110 g/l, 120 g/l, 130 g/l or even more. The medium may also comprise other components, including those derived from a biomass or lignocellulosic material such as cellobiose, arabinose, and rhamnose.

In culturing the microorganism, the microorganism may consume at least about 1%, 2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, or 10% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 10% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 20% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, or 30% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 30% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 10%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, or 40% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 40% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 10%, 20%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, or 50% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 50% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 20%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, or 60% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 60% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 40%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, or 70% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 70% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; at least about 50%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, or 80% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 80% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium; or at least about 50%, 60%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, or 90% of the initial amount of xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 90% of the initial amount of glucose in the medium.

In some versions, the medium comprises a biomass hydrolysate. Biomass is biological material derived from living or once-living organisms. Biomass can be from plant, animal, or other organic material. Biomass is carbon based and is composed of a mixture of organic molecules containing hydrogen, usually including atoms of oxygen, often nitrogen and also small quantities of other atoms, including alkali, alkaline earth and heavy metals. The biomass hydrolysate for use in the present invention can be produced from any biomass feedstock. Exemplary types of biomass feedstocks include sucrose-rich feedstocks such as suger cane; starchy materials, such as corn grain; and lignocellulosic biomass, such as costal Bermuda grass, switchgrass (Pancium virgatum), corn cobs, corn stover, cotton seed hairs, grasses, hardwood, hardwood stems, maple, leaves, newspaper, sugarcane bagasse, nut shells, paper, primary wastewater solids, softwood, softwood stems, pine loblolly pine, solid cattle manure, sorted refuse, grain hulls, swine waste, switchgrass, waste papers from chemical pulps, wheat straw, wood, wood chips, wood pulp, woody residues Miscanthus, date palm (Phoenix dectylifera), oil palm, Sorghum, and Arundo donax.

Prior to hydrolysis, the biomass feedstock may be pretreated or non-pretreated. Pretreatment of biomass feedstock removes a large proportion of the lignin and other materials and enhances the porosity of the biomass prior to hydrolysis. The biomass feedstock may be pretreated by any method. Exemplary pretreatments include chipping, grinding, milling, steam pretreatment, ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX, also referred to as ammonia fiber explosion), ammonia recycle percolation (ARP), CO₂ explosion, steam explosion, ozonolysis, wet oxidation, acid hydrolysis, dilute-acid hydrolysis, alkaline hydrolysis, ionic liquid, organosolv, and pulsed electrical field treatment, among others. See, e.g., Kumar et al. 2009 and da Costa Lopes et al. 2013.

The pretreated or non-pretreated biomass may be hydrolyzed by any suitable method. Hydrolysis converts biomass polymers to fermentable sugars, such as glucose and xylose, and other monomeric or oligomeric components. Exemplary hydrolysis methods include enzymatic hydrolysis (e.g., with cellulases or other enzymes), acid hydrolysis (e.g., with sulfurous, sulfuric, hydrochloric, hydrofluoric, phosphoric, nitric, and/or formic acids), and ionic liquid hydrolysis (e.g., with 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride) (Binder et al. 2010) among other methods. The hydrolysate may be in aqueous solution, concentrated, or dehydrated.

The microorganisms of the invention are particularly suited for producing ethanol from the consumption of carbohydrates such as glucose and/or xylose. Accordingly, methods of the invention comprise culturing a microorganism in a medium for a time sufficient to produce an amount of ethanol. The medium in such culturing may comprise glucose and xylose and/or may be a biomass hydrolysate as described above. The culturing may produce ethanol in an amount of at least about 10 mM, 25 mM, 50 mM, 75 mM, 100 mM, 150 mM, 200 mM, 250 mM, 300 mM, 350 mM, 400 mM, 450 mM, 500 mM, 550 mM, 600 mM, 650 mM, 700 mM, 750 mM, 800 mM, 850 mM, 900 mM or more. The culturing may produce a yield of ethanol based on the consumption of glucose and xylose of at least about 50%, 60%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 97%, 99% or more.

Prior to the culturing described herein, the microorganisms of the invention may be adapted to growth in the presence of certain components through adaptive evolution. Such components may comprise any one or more of glucose, xylose, ethanol, and biomass hydrolysate. The adapting may comprise serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of one or more of the components. In some versions, the adapting may comprise serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of one or more of the components to the exclusion of another one or more of the components. In some versions, the adapting may comprise serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of a first set of components and then serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of a second set of components, wherein the first set of components is different from the second set of components. In some versions, the adapting may comprise serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of a first set of components, then serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of a second set of components, and then serially passing the microorganisms in media comprising constant or increasing amounts of a third set of components, wherein at least two or all three of the first set of components, the second set of components and the third set of components are different from each other.

The elements and method steps described herein can be used in any combination whether explicitly described or not.

All combinations of method steps as used herein can be performed in any order, unless otherwise specified or clearly implied to the contrary by the context in which the referenced combination is made.

As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.

Numerical ranges as used herein are intended to include every number and subset of numbers contained within that range, whether specifically disclosed or not. Further, these numerical ranges should be construed as providing support for a claim directed to any number or subset of numbers in that range. For example, a disclosure of from 1 to 10 should be construed as supporting a range of from 2 to 8, from 3 to 7, from 5 to 6, from 1 to 9, from 3.6 to 4.6, from 3.5 to 9.9, and so forth.

All patents, patent publications, and peer-reviewed publications (i.e., “references”) cited herein are expressly incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual reference were specifically and individually indicated as being incorporated by reference. In case of conflict between the present disclosure and the incorporated references, the present disclosure controls.

It is understood that the invention is not confined to the particular construction and arrangement of parts herein illustrated and described, but embraces such modified forms thereof as come within the scope of the claims.

EXAMPLE

Introduction

Efficient conversion of lignocellulose-derived sugars to ethanol and other biofuels is a crucial step in sustainable bioenergy production from biomass. Glucose and xylose are the major sugars in pretreated lignocellulosic hydrolysate, and can both be converted by microorganisms into ethanol and other biofuels. However, microbial conversion of these sugars in lignocellulosic hydrolysate is hindered by the fact that microbes preferentially consume glucose first and do not consume xylose after glucose is depleted. This has been attributed to stresses associated with growth in hydrolysate (e.g., inhibitors produced from pretreatment, ethanol produced by fermentation, and high osmolarity).

Computational models of metabolic networks have been successfully used to study and engineer microbial metabolism to produce valuable chemicals. We used genome-scale metabolic models of Escherichia coli to identify gene knockout strategies to improve co-utilization of glucose and xylose in lignocellulosic hydrolysate (FIG. 1). Using the computational predictions, we constructed gene knockout mutants with inserted Zymomonas mobilis pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase genes to increase conversion of sugars to ethanol.

The constructed E. coli strains co-utilized glucose and xylose anaerobically in minimal media, but their growth and glucose uptake rates were much slower than the parental E. coli strain's. The engineered strains were then adaptively evolved in minimal media containing (1) glucose, (2) glucose and xylose, and (3) glucose and gradually increasing concentrations of ethanol. The evolved strains were able to simultaneously convert glucose and xylose into ethanol when grown in a synthetic hydrolysate (SynH) medium. In addition, two of the evolved strains co-utilized most of the glucose and xylose in ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX) pre-treated corn stover and switchgrass hydrolysates. The developed strains show significantly improved conversion of sugars into ethanol in lignocellulosic hydrolysates and provide a platform that may be further engineered to produce next-generation biofuels.

Material and Methods

Computational Strain Design for Improved Conversion of Glucose and Xylose to Ethanol

Genome-scale metabolic and transcriptional regulatory models of Escherichia coli (Reed et al. 2003, Covert et al. 2004, Feist et al. 2007, Barua et al. 2010, Orth et al. 2011) were used to identify genetic perturbations to improve the conversion of glucose and xylose to ethanol. The E. coli metabolic models were augmented with reactions catalyzed by Zymomonas mobilis pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase. A bi-level strain design method, OptORF (Kim et al. 2010), was first used to find metabolic gene or transcription factor deletions that would couple cellular growth and ethanol production in a minimal medium containing glucose and xylose. An uptake rate of 10 mmol/gDW/hr was used for glucose or xylose to simulate minimal media containing either glucose or xylose, and glucose uptake rate of 6 mmol/gDW/hr and xylose uptake rate of 4 mmol/gDW/hr were used to simulate minimal media containing both glucose and xylose. A flux prediction method, RELATCH (Kim et al. 2012), was used to find metabolic gene deletions that would improve xylose utilization in the presence of glucose. Among the genetic perturbation strategies identified by OptORF, the strategies that include the gene deletions identified by RELATCH were selected for experimental characterization.

Strain Construction and Adaptive Evolution

E. coli K-12 MG1655 was used to construct the strains based on the computational design. A PET cassette containing Z. mobilis pyruvate decarboxylase (pdc_(Zm)) and alcohol dehydrogenase (adhB_(Zm)), and chloramphenicol resistance marker (cat) was inserted into the pflB locus as described in a previous study (Schwalbach et al. 2012). The rest of genes were subsequently deleted using P1 transduction or other previously described methods (Baba et al. 2006, Datsenko et al. 2000).

TABLE 1 List of plasmids and strains Plasmids/Strains Genotype pPET pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) (pJGG2, Gardner et al. 2010) Parent E. coli K-12 MG1655 JK10 ldhA::kan pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) JK10 pPET JK10 with pPET JK20 ldhA::kan pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) Δpgi ΔgntR JK20 pPET JK20 with pPET JK20E JK20 adaptively evolved in M9 + glucose, xylose, ethanol JK20E pPET Isolate of JK20E with pPET JK30 ldhA::kan pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) ΔptsH JK30E JK30 adaptively evolved in M9 + xylose JK31 ΔldhA pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) ΔptsH fruB::kan (glc⁻) (from JK30) JK32 ΔldhA pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) ΔptsH fruB::kan (glc⁺) (isolate of JK31 grown on M9 glucose agar plates) JK32 pPET JK32 with pPET JK32E JK32 adaptively evolved in M9 + glucose, xylose, ethanol JK32E pPET isolate of JK32E with pPET JK33E ΔldhA pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) ΔptsH ΔfruB frdA::kan (derived from isolate from JK32E) JK33E pPET JK33E with pPET

The constructed strain JK30 was adaptively evolved at 37° C. by transferring cells to a fresh M9 minimal medium containing 2 g/L xylose at mid-exponential phase repeatedly. The adaptively evolved strain after 7 serial transfers was designated as JK30E. The strain JK31, which was derived from JK30, initially did not grow on glucose as a sole carbon source. Aliquots of cells were plated on glucose M9 agar plates and colonies were found after incubating at 37° C. for a few days, and an isolate was found that was able to grow in a M9 medium containing 2 g/L glucose (designated as JK32). The strains JK20 and JK32 were then each independently adaptively evolved at 37° C. by transferring cells to a fresh medium at mid-exponential phase, repeatedly. First, cells were transferred five times in M9 minimal media containing 10 g/L glucose and five times in M9 minimal media containing 6 g/L glucose and 4 g/L xylose to improve sugar uptake. Next, cells were transferred five times in M9 minimal media containing 10 g/L glucose with ethanol concentration from 1% to 5% (v/v) increased by 1% at each transfer. Cells were then transferred five times in M9 minimal media containing 10 g/L glucose and 5% ethanol to increase ethanol tolerance. Overall, the strains JK20 and JK32 were adaptively evolved independently for a total of ˜100 generations, and the evolved strains were designated as JK20E and JK32E, respectively. After the adaptive evolution, an additional copy of the PET cassette with gentamycin resistance marker on a plasmid (pPET) (Schwalbach et al. 2012) was transformed into the strains and single colonies were isolated on LB agar plates containing gentamycin. Strains containing the pPET plasmids are labeled accordingly (e.g., JK20E pPET).

Strain Characterization and Growth Condition

The initial characterization of the constructed strains was performed anaerobically in a M9 medium containing 6 g/L glucose and 4 g/L xylose to evaluate sugar utilization and ethanol production. The medium was flushed with N₂ gas and cultures were maintained anaerobic in Hungate tubes. Subsequent characterization in a synthetic hydrolysate medium (without lignocellulose-derived inhibitors) containing 60 g/L glucose and 30 g/L xylose (Keating et al. 2014) was done using 125 ml flasks with 50 ml of working volume in an anaerobic chamber sparged with 80% N₂, 10% CO₂, and 10% H₂ gas. In order to prevent the pH of cultures from decreasing significantly due to succinate production, 300 mM of phosphate buffer at pH 7 was added to the synthetic hydrolysate medium in flask experiments.

Fermentation experiments were conducted in duplicates using 250 ml mini-bioreactors (Applikon Biotechnology) with 100 ml of synthetic hydrolysate (SynH), ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX)-treated corn stover hydrolysate (ACSH), or AFEX-treated switchgrass hydrolysate (ASGH). The bioreactors were sparged with 95% N₂ and 5% CO₂ mixture gas at a flow rate of 20 ml/min, stirred at 500 rpm, and maintained at pH 7 and 37° C. Due to the sparging, the ethanol was evaporated from the culture and the amount of evaporated ethanol was estimated by a simple mass transfer model using data from an independent ethanol evaporation experiment.

Results

Computational Strain Designs to Improve Conversion of Glucose and Xylose to Ethanol

We identified genetic perturbations that would improve conversion of glucose and xylose to ethanol using genome-scale metabolic and transcriptional regulatory models of E. coli. The lactate dehydrogenase and pyruvate formate-lyase reactions were removed from the E. coli metabolic models and the Zymomonas mobilis pyruvate decarboxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase reactions were added to represent the ΔldhA pflB::(pdc_(Zmo) adhB_(Zmo) cat) genotype of a base strain (JK10) used in this study.

First, we used OptORF to find metabolic or transcriptional regulatory gene deletions that would improve ethanol production at the maximal growth rate. Metabolic models (Reed et al. 2003, Feist et al. 2007) or integrated metabolic and transcriptional regulatory models (Covert et al. 2004, Barua et al. 2010) were employed to generate diverse sets of genetic perturbation strategies to couple growth and ethanol production from glucose and/or xylose.

We then used RELATCH to find metabolic gene deletions that would improve the xylose uptake in a minimal medium containing glucose and xylose. The phenotype and gene expression of GLBRCE1 E. coli strain (Keating et al. 2014) was used to generate a reference metabolic state for RELATCH predictions. We evaluated the effect of single gene deletions on the xylose uptake rate under two different cases where cells are using only glucose or both glucose and xylose in the reference state. Among the identified gene deletions that would improve the xylose uptake rate in both RELATCH simulation cases, the deletion of phosphoglucoisomerase (pgi) or phosphoenolpyruvate phosphotransferase system (ptsH or ptsI) was also part of the strategies identified by OptORF. In the strategies involving the pgi deletion, the deletion of GntR transcriptional repressor was also found to remove the repression of Entner-Doudoroff pathway genes. We constructed two E. coli strains based on these results (Table 2).

TABLE 2 Computationally predicted growth and ethanol production for different strains Rate (mmol/gDW/hr) Growth Ethanol Glucose Xylose Ethanol Rate Yield Strains Uptake Uptake Production (1/hr) (%) JK10 and JK10 pPET 10 5 22.6 0.37 79.7 JK20 and JK20 pPET 10 5 23.8 0.29 84.1 JK30 and JK30 pPET 10 5 23.0 0.34 81.2 Co-Utilization of Glucose and Xylose by Engineered E. coli Strains in a Minimal Medium

The two computationally designed strains JK20 and JK30 were grown anaerobically in a M9 minimal medium containing 6 g/L of glucose and 4 g/L of xylose. Both JK20 and JK30 co-utilized glucose and xylose and produced ethanol (FIGS. 2A and 2B). While JK20 produced mainly ethanol from glucose and xylose, JK30 also produced some succinate and acetate as co-products. Since the overall conversion was slow in both strains, they were adaptively evolved in a M9 minimum medium containing 2 g/L xylose to improve the conversion of xylose to ethanol. However, after 7 serial transfers, we found that evolved strain JK30E showed a 2-fold increase in glucose uptake but had a 2-fold decrease in xylose uptake (FIG. 2C) when grown in M9 media with glucose and xylose. This was unexpected since the cells were adaptively evolved in the absence of glucose.

Sequencing of JK30E found mutations in the fruR gene, exclusively either a point mutation (N50K, 2 out of 6) or an in-frame deletion (957-962del, 4 out of 6). The fruR product regulates expression of the fruBKA operon, and FPr (encoded by fruB) can substitute for HPr (encoded by ptsH) (Saier et al. 1996). When the fruB gene was removed from JK30, the resulting strain JK31 had very slow glucose uptake when grown in a M9 minimal medium containing 6 g/L of glucose and 4 g/L of xylose (FIG. 2D), and did not grow in a M9 minimal medium containing 10 g/L of glucose. A culture of JK31 cells were plated on M9-glucose agar plates and placed in an incubator at 37° C., and colonies were found and isolated after two days. These cells were able to grow in a M9 minimal medium containing 10 g/L of glucose, and one isolate was designated as JK32.

Adaptive Evolution of Co-Utilization Strains in Minimal Media

The strains JK20 and JK32 were adaptively evolved in M9 minimal media to improve the conversion of sugars to ethanol. Cells were first adaptively evolved in a medium containing 10 g/L of glucose, and subsequently in a medium containing 6 g/L of glucose and 4 g/L of xylose. Next, cells were adaptively evolved in a medium containing 10 g/L of glucose and 1%-5% (v/v) ethanol, where the ethanol concentration was increased by 1% at each transfer. At 5% ethanol, the growth inhibition was significant and cells were again adaptively evolved in a medium containing 10 g/L of glucose and 5% ethanol. The resulting strains were designated as JK20E and JK32E, respectively.

We grew the initial and evolved strains in shake flasks containing a synthetic hydrolysate medium without known inhibitors from pretreatment (SynH) to evaluate their ability to convert high concentration of glucose and xylose to ethanol. An additional copy of PET cassette on a plasmid (pPET) was inserted into the initial strains and single isolates from the evolved strains to further increase the conversion of pyruvate to ethanol. Both the initial and evolved strains simultaneously consumed glucose and xylose and produced ethanol. While JK20E pPET did not show significant improvements over JK20 pPET (FIGS. 3A and 3B), we found that JK32E pPET had 2-fold increase in glucose uptake and improved ethanol production when compared to JK32 pPET (FIGS. 3C and 3D). The control strain JK10 pPET rapidly consumed glucose first and did not utilize much xylose after the glucose was depleted (FIG. 3E). We found that JK32E pPET also produced significant amount of succinate in addition to ethanol (FIG. 3D), and constructed a new strain JK33 pPET by deleting frdA gene from JK32E to remove succinate production. A summary of glucose and xylose uptake rates and succinate and ethanol production rates for each of JK10 pPET, JK20 pPET, JK20E pPET, JK32 pPET, and JK32E pPET is shown in FIG. 3F.

Fermentation in Synthetic and AFEX-Treated Hydrolysate Media

The control strain JK10 pPET and the evolved strains JK32E pPET and JK33 pPET were grown in bioreactors with 100 ml working volumes to demonstrate the evolved strain's ability to co-utilize glucose and xylose in industrially relevant conditions. When grown in SynH using bioreactors, JK10 pPET reached a higher cell density (OD600˜7) in 24 hours (compared to shake flasks, FIG. 3E), consumed all glucose within 36 hours, and slowly consumed xylose afterwards (FIG. 4A). JK32E pPET also reached a high cell density (OD600˜7) in 36 hours, consumed all glucose within 48 hours, and consumed 92.5% of xylose within 72 hours (FIG. 4B). JK33 pPET reached slightly lower cell density (OD600˜5) in 48 hours, consumed all glucose within 60 hours, and consumed 90.6% of xylose within 132 hours (FIG. 4C). Since the evaporation of ethanol from bioreactors due to sparging was significant, we estimated the amount of ethanol lost via evaporation using a simple mass transfer model. The amount lost was added to the measured ethanol titers yielding an estimated ethanol concentration (represented by dotted lines in FIGS. 4A-4I).

The growth rate and cell density were lower in AFEX-pretreated corn stover and switchgrass hydrolysates (ACSH and ASGH) than in SynH due to the presence of inhibitory compounds from the pretreatment. In ACSH, JK10 pPET was able to utilize glucose within 48 hours, but did not utilize xylose after glucose was depleted (FIG. 4D). JK32E pPET and JK33 pPET were able to co-utilize glucose and xylose, but the conversion slowed down after cells entered stationary phase, likely due to the additional stress caused by lignotoxins and/or accumulated ethanol (FIGS. 4E and 4F). The apparent stress from the pretreatment seemed less significant in ASGH than ACSH. JK10 pPET consumed all glucose and slowly utilized xylose in this medium (FIG. 4G). JK32E pPET and JK33 pPET were able to utilize all glucose and 93% and 71% of xylose, respectively (FIGS. 4H and 4I). The observed ethanol concentration was the highest for the JK33 pPET grown in ASGH among the all strains grown in ACSH or ASGH (Table 3). The estimated amount of ethanol produced by JK33 pPET in ASGH was 900.4 mM (41.5 g/L) which is 109.8% of the theoretical yield based on the consumed glucose and xylose, which could be explained by the other sugars consumed in ACSH and ASGH (e.g., arabinose, fructose, and galactose).

TABLE 3 Sugar consumption and ethanol production in hydrolysate media Produced (mM) Yield (%) Media Consumed (mM) Ethanol Ethanol Strains Glucose Xylose Pyruvate Succinate (Estimated) (Estimated) SynH JK10 pPET 353.3 199.3 27.4 41.0 522.4 (758.0) 60.9 (72.9) JK32E pPET 354.3 235.2 0.0 51.4 670.2 (850.3) 61.6 (77.3) JK33 pPET 348.5 235.1 0.0 1.7  645.2 (1040.9) 65.8 (95.6) ACSH JK10 pPET 375.9 21.5 0.0 60.2 494.1 (611.8) 64.4 (78.7) JK32E pPET 311.1 126.3 23.3 74.3 330.6 (572.2) 51.5 (68.7) JK33 pPET 225.0 88.0 0.0 0.5 390.0 (597.5)  75.2 (100.1) ASGH JK10 pPET 344.8 116.5 31.0 76.0 415.9 (675.6) 55.8 (76.4) JK32E pPET 347.7 205.7 11.5 100.7 443.7 (787.5) 45.7 (75.8) JK33 pPET 292.3 141.0 0.0 0.1 526.8 (900.4)  69.2 (109.8)

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We claim:
 1. A recombinant microorganism comprising: a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a phosphoglucose isomerase; a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a GntR; and one or more of: a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a pyruvate formate lyase; and a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene.
 2. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 wherein the microorganism is a bacterium.
 3. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 comprising a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a pyruvate formate lyase.
 4. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 further comprising a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a lactate dehydrogenase.
 5. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 comprising a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene and further comprising a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene.
 6. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 further comprising one or more of: a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a lactate dehydrogenase; and a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene.
 7. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 comprising: a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a pyruvate formate lyase; a genetic modification that reduces or ablates the activity of a lactate dehydrogenase; a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene; and a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene.
 8. A method of consuming a carbohydrate comprising culturing the recombinant microorganism of claim 1 in a medium comprising the carbohydrate, wherein the microorganism consumes the carbohydrate during the culturing.
 9. The method of claim 8 wherein the medium comprises glucose and xylose.
 10. The method of claim 9 wherein the microorganism consumes at least about 10% of an initial amount of the xylose in the medium during the time the microorganism consumes about 20% of an initial amount of the glucose in the medium.
 11. The method of claim 8 wherein the medium comprises a biomass hydrolysate.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein the biomass hydrolysate is an enzymatic hydrolysate, an acid hydrolysate, or a hydrolysate of an ionic liquid.
 13. The method of claim 8 wherein the microorganism is adapted to growth in a first medium comprising a component selected from the group consisting of glucose, xylose, and ethanol prior to culturing the microorganism in the medium.
 14. The method of claim 8 wherein the culturing produces at least about 300 mM ethanol.
 15. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 further comprising a recombinant alcohol dehydrogenase gene.
 16. The recombinant microorganism of claim 1 comprising a recombinant pyruvate decarboxylase gene. 